DOCSLIB.ORG

Cycad-Weevil Pollination Symbiosis Is Characterized by Rapidly Evolving and Highly Specific Plant-Insect Chemical Communication

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Cycad-Weevil Pollination Symbiosis Is Characterized by Rapidly Evolving and Highly Specific Plant-Insect Chemical Communication fpls-12-639368 April 30, 2021 Time: 12:6 # 1 ORIGINAL RESEARCH published: 30 April 2021 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2021.639368 Cycad-Weevil Pollination Symbiosis Is Characterized by Rapidly Evolving and Highly Specific Plant-Insect Chemical Communication Shayla Salzman1,2*, Damon Crook3, Michael Calonje4, Dennis W. Stevenson5, Naomi E. Pierce2† and Robin Hopkins2† 1 Plant Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States, 2 Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United States, 3 Otis Laboratory, USDA-APHIS-PPQ CPHST, Otis ANGB, MA, United States, 4 Montgomery Botanical Center, Coral Gables, FL, United States, 5 New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY, United States Coevolution between plants and insects is thought to be responsible for generating biodiversity. Extensive research has focused largely on antagonistic herbivorous Edited by: relationships, but mutualistic pollination systems also likely contribute to diversification. Dani Lucas-Barbosa, Here we describe an example of chemically-mediated mutualistic species interactions ETH Zürich, Switzerland affecting trait evolution and lineage diversification. We show that volatile compounds Reviewed by: produced by closely related species of Zamia cycads are more strikingly different Nina E. Fatouros, Wageningen University and Research, from each other than are other phenotypic characters, and that two distantly related Netherlands pollinating weevil species have specialized responses only to volatiles from their Sergio E. Ramos, University of Pittsburgh, United States specific host Zamia species. Plant transcriptomes show that approximately a fifth *Correspondence: of genes related to volatile production are evolving under positive selection, but Shayla Salzman we find no differences in the relative proportion of genes under positive selection [email protected] in different categories. The importance of phenotypic divergence coupled with † These authors have contributed chemical communication for the maintenance of this obligate mutualism highlights equally to this work chemical signaling as a key mechanism of coevolution between cycads and their Specialty section: weevil pollinators. This article was submitted to Plant Metabolism Keywords: coevolution, brood-site mutualism, chemical signaling, Coleoptera, Caribbean and Chemodiversity, a section of the journal Frontiers in Plant Science INTRODUCTION Received: 08 December 2020 Accepted: 12 April 2021 Obligate mutualistic associations involving a high degree of specialization by both partners such Published: 30 April 2021 as those between figs and fig wasps and yuccas and yucca moths are less common in nature, Citation: and yet the analysis of such systems is also vital to our understanding of mechanisms underlying Salzman S, Crook D, Calonje M, the evolution of plant/insect interactions (Pellmyr, 2003; Herre et al., 2008). Studies of these Stevenson DW, Pierce NE and and other pollination systems (Holland and Fleming, 1999; Kawakita, 2010) have highlighted Hopkins R (2021) Cycad-Weevil morphological and behavioral traits associated with mutualism, and begun to identify mechanisms Pollination Symbiosis Is Characterized of diversification and speciation associated with these lineages (Althoff et al., 2012; Hembry by Rapidly Evolving and Highly Specific Plant-Insect Chemical et al., 2013; Suinyuy et al., 2015). Plant volatile production for attracting pollinators has been Communication. hypothesized as a likely mediator of specialized brood-site mutualisms (Pellmyr, 2003; Okamoto Front. Plant Sci. 12:639368. et al., 2007), yet has been largely overlooked in its contribution to diversification (Suinyuy et al., doi: 10.3389/fpls.2021.639368 2015). In order to fully understand the process of diversification in mutualistic, coevolving lineages, Frontiers in Plant Science| www.frontiersin.org 1 April 2021| Volume 12| Article 639368 fpls-12-639368 April 30, 2021 Time: 12:6 # 2 Salzman et al. Chemical Communication in Cycad-Weevil Pollination Mutualism we need to learn more about the causes and consequences of Caribbean Zamia clade to look for evidence of rapid evolution species interactions. Specifically, we are interested in identifying: and positive selection associated with volatile production. By (1) traits driving these relationships, (2) whether these traits analyzing reciprocal evolutionary change in volatile production are diverging across closely related taxa, and (3) the role of and insect perception, we provide investigation of coevolution selection in trait divergence. Zamia cycads and their Rhopalotria in what is arguably the earliest example of an insect mediated pollination mutualists are an ideal study system as they represent “pollination syndrome” (Cai et al., 2018; Salzman et al., 2020). an understudied obligate brood-site pollination mutualism where the importance of volatile signaling is clear. The ancient plant order Cycadales is an early diverging MATERIALS AND METHODS lineage of gymnosperms (Ran et al., 2018) and, unlike most other gymnosperms requires insect pollination instead of wind Study System and Design pollination (Terry et al., 2012). The pollination mechanism of Rhopalotria and Zamia form a tight obligate mutualism. most cycads appears to be an obligate brood site mutualism Rhopalotria and their close relatives are found across much of whereby highly specialized pollinators live out their lifecycle Zamia diversity where they provide necessary pollination services within pollen cone tissue (Mound and Terry, 2001; Terry, 2001; to their respective host Zamia species, which in turn provide Terry et al., 2005, 2007). This mutualism is hypothesized to be food, brood sites, and shelter. Feeding damage does not affect driven by host plant volatile organic compounds (VOCs) through reproduction or potential fitness of Zamia as Rhopalotria feed a push-pull pollination mechanism (Terry et al., 2007; Salzman only on the disposable pollen cone parenchyma tissue. This et al., 2020). Pollinators are attracted to mid-level amounts of the mutualism is mediated by plant volatile production (Salzman host plant compound but are repelled by high levels of VOCs. et al., 2020), a cue that is important for lifecycle completion Pollen and ovulate cones have a daily cycle of VOC production in both lineages. The strength of the mutualism is such that causing pollinators to be repulsed by the male cones and attracted pollinators go into diapause during the 10 months of the year to the female cones, and then attracted to the male cones once when reproductive services are not required by the host plant again. The pattern of plant volatile release is conserved across (Norstog and Fawcett, 1989; Norstog et al., 1992). the Cycadales, and the behavioral response of pollinators to the Caribbean Zamia species are distributed across Florida, Cuba, daily change in expression of host plant VOC has converged Jamaica, the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic (but between Cycadothrips chadwicki (Thysanoptera) and Rhopalotria not Haiti) and Puerto Rico (Calonje et al., 2020). Rhopalotria furfuracea (Coleoptera) suggesting that this push-pull pollination species have been found associated with all populations of mechanism is the likely pollination syndrome across the Caribbean Zamia except those on Puerto Rico (Tang et al., Cycadales (Salzman et al., 2020). Much of the Neotropical 2018). Zamia integrifolia as currently circumscribed is distributed cycad genus Zamia are pollinated by Rhopalotria weevils and across the southeastern United States (Florida and Georgia), closely related genera within the Allocorynina (Tang et al., 2018). the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, and Cuba (Calonje et al., 2020) These weevils feed and reproduce on the pollen cone of their although these populations are not monophyletic (Calonje et al., host Zamia (Norstog and Fawcett, 1989; Norstog et al., 1992). 2019). Rhopalotria slossoni is distributed across southern Florida Conversely, the host Zamia species are completely dependent (O’Brien and Tang, 2015) where it provides pollination services upon pollination services by the weevils (Norstog et al., 1986; to populations of Z. integrifolia (Tang, 1987; Norstog et al., 1992). Tang, 1987). The Zamia—Rhopalotria symbiosis appears to be fully mutualistic for both lineages, and the relationship has Plant Volatile Analysis been hypothesized to exhibit phylogenetic congruence between To quantify the diversity of VOC profiles in the Zamia clade, specialized partners (Norstog et al., 1992; Stevenson et al., 1998; we collected plant volatiles from dehiscing pollen cones of 10 Tang et al., 2018). However, studies remain to be done that Caribbean taxa using headspace collection methods (see Salzman provide information about potential coevolutionary mechanisms et al., 2020). We quantified volatiles from 3 to 7 plants per taxa. involved, including those documenting reciprocal evolutionary These plants were wild collected as seeds from native populations change in each lineage (e.g., Janzen, 1980). across the Caribbean (Supplementary Figure 1) and cultivated Chemical communication mediating the relationship between in a common garden at Montgomery Botanical Center (MBC) plant and pollinator has been described for one species pair, in Coral Gables, Florida. All volatiles were collected between Mexican Z. furfuracea/R. furfuracea, and is hypothesized to be the hours of 13:30 and 16:00 (Supplementary Table 1) across 7 driving relationships across the two lineages (Salzman et al., days in 2019. Zamia phenology across the
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Temporal Lags and Overlap in the Diversification of Weevils and Flowering Plants
    Temporal lags and overlap in the diversification of weevils and flowering plants Duane D. McKennaa,1, Andrea S. Sequeirab, Adriana E. Marvaldic, and Brian D. Farrella aDepartment of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138; bDepartment of Biological Sciences, Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA 02481; and cInstituto Argentino de Investigaciones de Zonas Aridas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Te´cnicas, C.C. 507, 5500 Mendoza, Argentina Edited by May R. Berenbaum, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, and approved March 3, 2009 (received for review October 22, 2008) The extraordinary diversity of herbivorous beetles is usually at- tributed to coevolution with angiosperms. However, the degree and nature of contemporaneity in beetle and angiosperm diversi- fication remain unclear. Here we present a large-scale molecular phylogeny for weevils (herbivorous beetles in the superfamily Curculionoidea), one of the most diverse lineages of insects, based on Ϸ8 kilobases of DNA sequence data from a worldwide sample including all families and subfamilies. Estimated divergence times derived from the combined molecular and fossil data indicate diversification into most families occurred on gymnosperms in the Jurassic, beginning Ϸ166 Ma. Subsequent colonization of early crown-group angiosperms occurred during the Early Cretaceous, but this alone evidently did not lead to an immediate and ma- jor diversification event in weevils. Comparative trends in weevil diversification and angiosperm dominance reveal that massive EVOLUTION diversification began in the mid-Cretaceous (ca. 112.0 to 93.5 Ma), when angiosperms first rose to widespread floristic dominance. These and other evidence suggest a deep and complex history of coevolution between weevils and angiosperms, including codiver- sification, resource tracking, and sequential evolution.
    [Show full text]
  • Insect Pollination of Cycads 9 10 Alicia Toon1, L
    1 2 DR. ALICIA TOON (Orcid ID : 0000-0002-1517-2601) 3 4 5 Article type : Invited Review 6 7 8 Insect pollination of cycads 9 10 Alicia Toon1, L. Irene Terry2, William Tang3, Gimme H. Walter1, and Lyn G. Cook1 11 12 1The University of Queensland, School of Biological Sciences, Brisbane, Qld, 4072, 13 Australia 2 14 University of Utah, School of Biological Sciences, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA 15 3 USDA APHIS PPQ South Florida, P.O.Box 660520, Miami, FL 33266, USA 16 17 Corresponding author: Alicia Toon 18 [email protected] Ph: +61 (0) 411954179 19 Goddard Building, The University of Queensland, School of Biological Sciences, Brisbane, 20 Qld, 4072, Australia. 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Manuscript Author 31 This is the author manuscript accepted for publication and has undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1111/AEC.12925 This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved 32 33 Acknowledgements 34 We would like to thank Dean Brookes for discussions about genetic structure in cycad 35 pollinating thrips populations. Also, thanks to Mike Crisp for discussions about plant 36 diversification and Paul Forster for information on Australian cycads. This work was funded 37 by ARC Discovery Grant DP160102806. 38 39 Abstract 40 Most cycads have intimate associations with their insect pollinators that parallel those of 41 well-known flowering plants, such as sexually-deceptive orchids and the male wasps and 42 bees they deceive.
    [Show full text]
  • Histological Changes During Maturation in Male Zamia
    Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society (1993), 111: 241-252. With 12 figures Histological changes during maturation in male and female cones of the cycad Zamia furfuracea and their significance in relation to pollination biology ANDREW P. VOVIDES Instituto de Ecologia, A.C., Apdo. Postal 63, Xalapa, Veracruz, 91000 Mexico KNUT J. NORSTOG, PRISCILLA K. S. FAWCETT Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, Florida 33156, U.S.A. MARK W. DUNCAN Biomedical Mass Spectrometry Unit, University of New South Wales, PO Box 1, Kensington, NS W 2033, Australia ROBERT J. NASH Jodrell Laboratory, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3DS AND DIAN V. MOLSEN Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois 60115, U.S.A. Received March 1992, accepted for publication June 1992 VOVIDES, A. P., NORSTOG, K. J. FAWCETT, P. K. S., DUNCAN, M. W., NASH, R. J. & MOLSEN, D. V., 1993. Histological changes during maturation in male and female cones of the cycad Zamiafurfuracea and their significance in relation to pollination biology. The cycad Zamia furfuracea L. Fil. is pollinated by a curculionid beetle, Rhopalotria mollk Sharp which completes its life cycle in male cones of the cycad, and effectively pollinates female cones. Idioblasts within parenchyma in both male and female cones appear to contain toxic compounds, including at least one neurotoxin, 2-amino-3-(methylamino) propanoic acid (BMAA), and a toxic glycoside, methylazoxymethanol-8-primeveroside (macrozamin). Idioblasts appear structurally unmodified in male cones throughout the period of pollen maturation, and feeding weevils consume much of the 241 0024-4074/93/020241+ 12 $08.00/0 0 1993 The Linnean Society of London 242 A.
    [Show full text]
  • Supporting Information
    Supporting Information McKenna et al. 10.1073/pnas.0810618106 SI Materials and Methods alX 1.831 (4) using the default settings. The resulting alignment Taxon Sampling. We analyzed up to 8 kb of DNA sequence data for each gene was adjusted ‘‘by eye’’ in the program MacClade from a worldwide sample of 135 weevil genera representing all 4.06 (5). Regions of ambiguous alignment in 16S, 18S, and 28S, 7 weevil families, all 26 weevil subfamilies, and 97 genera and introns in EF 1-␣ and AK were removed. The individual representing most major tribes in the extraordinarily diverse alignments for each gene were then concatenated in MacClade, family Curculionidae (supporting information (SI) Table S1 and and the resulting aligned matrix (6 genes, Ϸ8 kb) used in Table S3). Outgroups included 7 subfamilies of basal Chry- subsequent analyses. someloidea and Ericmodes sylvaticus (Protocucujidae), a mem- ber of the closely related superfamily Cucujoidea. Six genes (2 Phylogenetic Analyses. Phylogenetic analyses were conducted on mitochondrial and 4 nuclear) were used in this study: cytochrome the 8-kb molecular supermatrix using Bayesian and ML infer- oxidase I, 18S rDNA, 28S rDNA, 16S rDNA, Elongation Factor-1a, ence. A partitioned ML BS analysis (1,000 inferences, 12 parti- and Arginine Kinase (AK). All 16S rDNA (1), and select other tions, CAT substitution model, individual per partition branch- sequences, were obtained from GenBank. For some genera, length optimization) was implemented in the program RAxML chimeras were constructed from sequences for different species version 7.04 (6) using the CIPRES cluster at the San Diego to reduce the amount of missing data.
    [Show full text]
  • CURCULIO an International Newsletter for Curculionoidea Research Volume 53 September 2006 Featured Researcher CONTENTS Department of Biology Featured Researcher
    CURCULIO An International Newsletter for Curculionoidea Research Volume 53 September 2006 Featured Researcher CONTENTS Department of Biology Featured Researcher ............................. 1 Bjarte Jordal University of Bergen, Norway Editorial Comments .......................... 2 Research Activities ......................... 4 Past Specialists: W. H. Anderson ..... 5 ESA 2006 Report ............................... 8 Curculio-Institute .................................. 10 BToL Weevils ........................................ 11 Obituary Vadim Gratshev ..................... 12 Bulletin Board ....................................... 13 Recent Publications .............................. 14 Directory of Researchers ..................... 17 Academic Background Bachelor of Science in Biology, University of Bergen, Norway - 1993 Master of Science in Systematic Zoology, University of Bergen - 1995: "Taxonomy and ecology of beetles breeding in Cecropia (Cecropiaceae) leafstalks with special empha- sis on Scolytodes (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)" Bjarte Jordal at the University of Bergen Didactics in Natural Sciences, University of Bergen - 1996 conservation biology. I grew up on a mountain farm in the Doctor of Philosophy in Evolutionary Biology, University of western parts of Norway, with long winters and very little expo- Bergen & Harvard University - 2001: "The origin and radi- sure to insect diversity, except for blood sucking mosquitoes ation of sib-mating haplodiploid beetles (Coleoptera, Cur- and other annoyances. Therefore my narrowminded
    [Show full text]
  • The Ecology and Evolution of Cycads and Their Symbionts
    The Ecology and Evolution of Cycads and Their Symbionts The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Salzman, Shayla. 2019. The Ecology and Evolution of Cycads and Their Symbionts. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:42013055 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA The ecology and evolution of cycads and their symbionts ADISSERTATIONPRESENTED BY SHAYLA SALZMAN TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ORGANISMIC AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN THE SUBJECT OF BIOLOGY HARVARD UNIVERSITY CAMBRIDGE,MASSACHUSETTS AUGUST 2019 c 2019 – SHAYLA SALZMAN ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Thesis advisors: Professors Naomi E. Pierce & Robin Hopkins Shayla Salzman The ecology and evolution of cycads and their symbionts ABSTRACT Interactions among species are responsible for generating much of the biodiversity that we see today, yet coevolved associations with high species specificity are rare in nature and have sometimes been considered to be evolutionary dead ends. The plant order Cycadales is among the most ancient lineages of seed plants, and the tissues of all species are highly toxic. Cycads exhibit many specialized interactions, making them ideal for analyzing the causes and consequences of symbiotic relationships. In Chapter 1, I characterize the pollination mutualism between Zamia furfuracea cycads and their Rhopalotria furfuracea weevil pollinators.
    [Show full text]
  • Life History, Population Dynamics and Conservation Status of Oldenburgia Grandis (Asteraceae), an Endemic of the Eastern Cape of South Africa
    The conservation, ecology, and distribution of the Critically Endangered Encephalartos latifrons Lehm. A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (SCIENCE) of RHODES UNIVERSITY by CARIN SWART Department of Botany March 2019 ABSTRACT Cycads have attracted global attention both as horticulturally interesting and often valuable plants; but also as some of the most threatened organisms on the planet. In this thesis I investigate the conservation management, biology, reproductive ecology and distribution of Encephalartos latifrons populations in the wild and draw out conclusions on how best to conserve global cycad biodiversity. I also employ computer- modelling techniques in some of the chapters of this thesis to demonstrate how to improve conservation outcomes for E. latifrons and endangered species in general, where information on the distribution, biology and habitat requirements of such species are inherently limited, often precluding robust conservation decision-making. In Chapter 1 of this thesis I introduce the concept of extinction debt and elucidate the importance of in situ cycad conservation. I explain how the concept of extinction debt relates to single species, as well as give details on the mechanisms causing extinction debt in cycad populations. I introduce the six extinction trajectory threshold model and how this relates to extinction debt in cycads. I discuss the vulnerability of cycads to extinction and give an overview of biodiversity policy in South Africa. I expand on how national and global policies contribute to cycad conservation and present various global initiatives that support threatened species conservation. I conclude Chapter 1 by explaining how computer-based models can assist conservation decision-making for rare, threatened, and endangered species in the face of uncertainty.
    [Show full text]
  • The Paleobiology of Pollination and Its Precursors
    IN: Gastaldo, R.A. and DiMichele, W.A., (eds.), 2000. Phanerozoic Terrestrial Ecosystems. Paleontological Society Papers 6: 233-269. THE PALEOBIOLOGY OF POLLINATION AND ITS PRECURSORS CONRAD C. LAB ANDEIRA Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560 USA and University of Maryland, Department of Entomology, College Park, MD 20742-4454 USA. PERHAPS THE MOST conspicuous of to the earlier Cenozoic and later Mesozoic, there is associations between insects and plants is a resurgence in understanding the evolutionary pollination. Pollinating insects are typically the first history of earlier palynivore taxa (spore, prepollen and most obvious of interactions between insects and pollen consumers), which led toward pollination and plants when one encounters a montane as a mutualism (Scott et al., 1992). meadow or a tropical woodland. The complex Almost all terrestrial vascular plants have two ecological structure of insect pollinators and their opportunities during their life cycle to disperse to host plants is a central focus within the ever- new localities. These events are spore or pollen expanding discipline of plant-insect interactions. dispersal to fertilize a megagametophyte at the The relationships between plants and insects have haploid phase, and the dispersal of the fertilized, provided the empirical documentation of many diploid megagametophyte after it has been case-studies that have resulted in the formulation transformed into a seed in seed-bearing plants. of biological principles and construction of Agamic modes of plant colonization also occur, theoretical models, such as the role of foraging such as vegetative propagation through strategy on optimal plant-resource use, the disseminules including root fragments or leaves advantages of specialized versus generalized host with adventitious rootlets.
    [Show full text]
  • Înformâtiün I?J Ilshius
    îNFORMÂTiüN i?J ilsHiUS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. University Microfilms international A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 Nortti Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Order Number 9201729 Comparative ultrastructure of fossil gyrtmosperm pollen and implications regarding the origin of angiosperms Osborn, Jeffrey Mark, Ph.D. The Ohio State University, 1991 U’M'I 300 N.
    [Show full text]
  • A Natural History of Conspecific Aggregations in Terrestrial Arthropods, with Emphasis on Cycloalexy in Leaf Beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)
    TAR Terrestrial Arthropod Reviews 5 (2012) 289–355 brill.com/tar A natural history of conspecific aggregations in terrestrial arthropods, with emphasis on cycloalexy in leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Jorge A. Santiago-Blay1,*, Pierre Jolivet2,3 and Krishna K. Verma4 1Department of Paleobiology, MRC-121, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, P.O. Box 37012, Washington, DC 20013-7012, USA 2Natural History Museum, Paris, 67 Boulevard Soult, 75012 Paris, France 3Museum of Entomology, Florida State Collection of Arthropods Gainesville, FL, USA 4HIG 1/327, Housing Board Colony, Borsi, Durg-491001 India *Corresponding author; e-mails: [email protected], [email protected]. PJ: [email protected]; KKV: [email protected] Received on 30 April 2012. Accepted on 17 July 2012. Final version received on 29 October 2012. Summary Aggregations of conspecifics are ubiquitous in the biological world. In arthropods, such aggregations are generated and regulated through complex interactions of chemical and mechanical as well as abiotic and biotic factors. Aggregations are often functionally associated with facilitation of defense, thermomodula- tion, feeding, and reproduction, amongst others. Although the iconic aggregations of locusts, fireflies, and monarch butterflies come to mind, many other groups of arthropods also aggregate. Cycloalexy is a form of circular or quasicircular aggregation found in many animals. In terrestrial arthropods, cycloalexy appears to be a form of defensive aggregation although we cannot rule out other functions, particularly thermomodulation. In insects, cycloalexic-associated behaviors may include coordinated movements, such as the adoption of seemingly threatening postures, regurgitation of presumably toxic compounds, as well as biting movements. These behaviors appear to be associated with attempts to repel objects perceived to be threatening, such as potential predators or parasitoids.
    [Show full text]
  • Curculio a Newsletter Devoted to Dissemination of Knowledge About Curculionoidea
    CURCULIO A NEWSLETTER DEVOTED TO DISSEMINATION OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT CURCULIONOIDEA NO. 43 - DECEMBER 1998 CANADIAN MUSEUM OF NATURE P.O. BOX 3443, STATION D EDITED BY OTTAWA, ON. K1P 6P4 ROBERT S. ANDERSON CANADA Carlos Bordon working at his house in Maracay, Venezuela; June 1998. Photo courtesy of Bob Anderson. CURCULIO EDITORIAL COMMENTS Last issue I commented on a new program being considered at the museum which recognized patrons of a fund in support of systematics with a species name in their honor. This fund and program will be launched December 16, 1998 at the Canadian Museum of Nature. We’re looking forward to seeing the impact it will have on how the public perceives and appreciates taxonomic work. This brings me to an important point….just how important is what we do as systematists. I am of the opinion that very few people actually understand and appreciate what we do. To most, we are viewed as ‘stamp collectors’; certainly we don’t do real science. Real science requires lab coats, chemicals, experiments, lots of expensive equipment and lots of money. How do we change this view and demonstrate that taxonomic work has societal relevance and should be of general community interest and utility. Frankly, I think we spend too much time ‘preaching to the converted’….most of our products are technical scientific publications prepared for a very small and limited audience. This audience is generally our taxonomic colleagues! I won’t suggest we abandon this approach entirely, but I do think we need to give more consideration to providing the community at large with information that can be seen as immediately valuable and pertinent.
    [Show full text]
  • Evolutionary Genetics of the Genus Zamia (Zamiaceae, Cycadales)
    Florida International University FIU Digital Commons FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations University Graduate School 11-5-2019 Evolutionary Genetics of the Genus Zamia (Zamiaceae, Cycadales) Michael Calonje [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd Part of the Biodiversity Commons, Botany Commons, Genetics Commons, Molecular Genetics Commons, and the Plant Biology Commons Recommended Citation Calonje, Michael, "Evolutionary Genetics of the Genus Zamia (Zamiaceae, Cycadales)" (2019). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 4340. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/4340 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the University Graduate School at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Miami, Florida EVOLUTIONARY GENETICS OF THE GENUS ZAMIA (ZAMIACEAE, CYCADALES) A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in BIOLOGY b y Michael Calonje Bazar 2019 To: Dean Michael R. Heithaus College of Arts, Sciences, and Education This dissertation, written by Michael Calonje Bazar, and entitled Evolutionary Genetics of the Genus Zamia (Zamiaceae, Cycadales), having been approved in respect to style and intellectual content, is referred to you for judgment. We have read this dissertation and recommend that it be approved. _______________________________________ Timothy M. Collins _______________________________________ M. Patrick Griffith _______________________________________ Hong Liu _______________________________________ Alan W. Meerow _______________________________________ Jennifer H. Richards _______________________________________ Andrew P. Vovides _______________________________________ Javier Francisco-Ortega, Major Professor Date of Defense: November 5, 2019 The dissertation of Michael Calonje Bazar is approved.
    [Show full text]